Calgary, Alberta Canada has a slogan that says it all: Heart of the New West. Calgary is a vibrant city that offers the best of all worlds - a cosmopolitan city of nearly one million people, and wilderness and outdoor adventure are only an hour away in the Canadian Rockies.

This is a wonderful place to visit, and nearly 5 million visitors each year agree as they find a wealth of:

• Cultural attractions
• Award winning cuisine
• Parks and pathways
• Specialty shops
• Trendy night spots in Calgary

Outdoors enthusiasts have it all too: they can golf or hike, fish or mountain bike, ski or dog sled. The National Hockey League Calgary Flames make their home here, playing explosive hockey at the Pengrowth Saddledome
The parks in Calgary are some of the finest natural areas in North America. Shopping is fun and offers a special benefit; Alberta is the only province in Canada with no provincial sales tax.

Those with a passion for culture will enjoy the city’s dynamic arts scene. And all of this will happen, surrounded in western hospitality.

 The skyscrapers of downtown Calgary seem out of place rising unexpectedly from the shallow Bow River Valley. They contrast sharply with the dry, flat prairie stretching off to the east and south. Located between the slopes of one of the world's most rugged mountain ranges and soft grasslands, Calgary is a city constantly on the move.

Known as a hotbed for young entrepreneurs, the city has embraced the information age, while still clinging to the pioneer roots forged by the ranchers, railroad workers and oilmen who laid Calgary's foundations. Since 1914 the petroleum industry has centered its activities here. Today more than 85 percent of Canada’s oil and gas producers are headquartered in Calgary. Thus, is the reason for a phenomenal growth rate.

A city-administered census showed Calgary’s population to be just over 991,000 in 2006. Nine percent of the resident population in Calgary was 65 and over, compared with 13.2 per cent in Canada, therefore, the average age is younger than that of the rest of the country.

A majority  - 79 percent - of Calgarians declare no visible minority status. Another 2.3% of the population is Aboriginal. In addition, the city is home to a relatively large number of people belonging to visible minority groups, including but limited to Chinese, South Asian, Filipino, and Black. .